


I only remember the sweetest of things

by enigma731, invisibledaemon



Series: 12 Days of Starmora [9]
Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Illegitimacy, peter's grandparents, tagging in case that's a trigger for anyone
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-16
Updated: 2017-12-16
Packaged: 2019-02-15 14:25:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13033065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enigma731/pseuds/enigma731, https://archiveofourown.org/users/invisibledaemon/pseuds/invisibledaemon
Summary: "You haven't talked about your grandfather much," says Gamora."Well, I don't remember much about him from before my mom got sick, except that he used to fight with her a lot. I think he was angry with her, for having me."She frowns. "Why would he be angry?""Because she was so young,” he says sadly.So young; she died much younger than he is right now. "And she wasn't married, was probably mostly it. Earth was weird about that, or at least Missouri was."





	I only remember the sweetest of things

**Author's Note:**

> 12 days of starmora day 12 - Family 
> 
> There's a brief mention of Peter being "illegitimate" and the term "bastard" being used about him in a negative way

Peter’s sitting on the grass when she finds him, back against a tree. He smiles and takes his earbuds out as she approaches; it’s not like he’d been trying to hide, really, especially not from her. He’d only gone a couple of feet into the woods. 

“Hey,” Gamora says. “You alright?” 

“Yeah,” he says honestly. “Just wanted a moment away from all--that.” He gestures vaguely the way she’d come, where the wreckage of the Milano sits. “Not you, though, if you wanna join.”

He sits up a little straighter and pats the ground between his legs. He’s not sure if she’ll take the invitation; this thing between them is still new and a bit tentative, though they’ve come so far in just the past couple days. 

It only takes her a second of consideration, though, then she’s sitting on the ground and leaning back against his chest, smiling tentatively up at him. He smiles back, heart about ready to burst just from having her so close like this. 

“Comfy?” he asks, wrapping his arms around her waist after waiting for her nod. 

“Yes,” she says simply, relaxing further into him and laying her arms across his. 

"It's peaceful out here,” he observes after a moment. “We should find more places with nature like this. Preferably without crashing into them."

"Not our most graceful moment," she agrees. "Though Drax enjoyed it."

He laughs, but it fades quickly. "Only because you were there to keep him alive. Which is good, I know. But seeing you hanging out of the back of the ship like that..." He sighs. "Well, I'm just glad you hung on."

She shrugs. "I would have survived the fall. Him too. You, on the other hand, could have given yourself a concussion or much worse with that impact."

"You still could've gotten hurt," he says sadly. He doesn't enjoy thinking about that, though, so he injects some levity into his voice when he says, "And hey, don't underestimate how thick my skull is." He lightly raps his knuckles against the top of his head. "My grandpa used to say it was like I had a hard-hat in there."

"You haven't talked about your grandfather much," says Gamora, reaching up run her hand soothingly through his hair. 

He leans his head slightly into her touch, letting his chin rest on her shoulder so it’s an easier reach for her. "Well, I don't remember much about him from before my mom got sick, except that he used to fight with her a lot. I think he was angry with her, for having me."

She frowns. "Why would he be angry?"

"Because she was so young,” he says sadly. _So young_ ; she died much younger than he is right now. "And she wasn't married, was probably mostly it. Earth was weird about that, or at least Missouri was. You weren't supposed to have kids unless you were married. Lots of people--disapproved, I guess; said I was a bastard. Illegitimate."

"Illegitimate for what?" 

"For being recognized as... I don't know, her real kid?" He doesn't really understand it himself, because clearly he's real, but that's all he'd understood of it as a child. "I don't know if my grandparents actually felt that way, but I remember my grandpa being weird around me when I was younger, and I hardly ever saw my grandma before my mom got sick."

"That sounds difficult," says Gamora. She shifts in his lap, getting an arm around him though the angle is awkward.

He moves his legs to help turn her sideways, get her into a more comfortable position, and then wraps his arms around her again. "Yeah... especially because my grandparents refused to see or speak to each other for a while there. I usually preferred it when it was just me and my mom, anyway."

"That must be awful," says Gamora. "To feel unwanted."

"Yeah," he says sadly. He hasn't thought about this particular guilt in a long time, the last year or so of his mother's life dominating most of his memories. But he thinks back now, remembering awkward holidays and more than one occasion where they'd left a gathering early. "That's why I didn't like being around them. Plus I always felt like it was my fault, like I came along and ruined my mom's family."

" _I_ want you," she says softly.

He smiles a little tearfully, a pleasant ache in his chest as he's reminded of her unerring ability to grab onto his heart with the simplest statement. "Then that's all I need," he says sincerely, holding her tighter.

She smiles back sadly. "I'm glad. But--it doesn't have to be, you know? You're allowed to want more."

"I know," he says, playing with the ends of her hair. "But I'm not like, hung up on that or anything. My grandparents totally changed after my mom got sick, and my grandpa especially was pretty good, those last few months."

"How did they change?" she asks, turning to give him better access to her hair. "Did you know why?"

He strokes his hand slowly through her hair, admiring the way the strands look between his fingers. "They were just nicer, and friendlier to me. My grandpa came over more, my grandma called more because she lived out of state. I didn't realize why until the cancer got really bad, and they couldn't hide it from me anymore." He swallows, focusing on her hair to ground himself. "We still weren't super close, but it was a lot better."

“I am glad you had them, then.”

“Yeah,” he whispers. “I’d have lived with my grandpa if--well, you know.” 

She looks at him in that soft, focused way she often does. “Do you regret that you didn’t get to?”

“No,” he says immediately, sincerely. “I used to, sometimes. But not anymore. I like where I ended up.” He gives her waist a little squeeze and she smiles. 

“Good,” she says, pressing a light kiss to his jaw. He’s pretty sure his resulting grin could split his face in half. “I do, too.”

**Author's Note:**

> That's the last day!! Hope you enjoyed!


End file.
